Are Mechanical Keyboards Worth it?

Mechanical Keyboards are a premium option to choose from as compared to membrane or rubber dome keyboards.

Before I upgraded to a mechanical keyboard from a membrane keyboard, I wondered if a mechanical keyboard was worth it or not.

Mechanical Keyboards are worth the quality and durability they provide. They have a solid form factor and high-quality mechanical keys that add to durability. Even on average, a mechanical keyboard would last for 10-15 years. The value mechanical keyboards provide in terms of performance and longevity is unmatched.

Why Should you Trust Me? Hi, I am Anirban Saha, an Engineer with a Specialization in Electronics and Communication Engineering. I have experience in Smart TVs, Electronics circuits, and Computer peripherals.

Let’s get started!

Mechanical keyboard Switches Quality with Brands

The components that a mechanical keyboard and made of really decide whether the mechanical keyboard is worth it or not.

Mechanical Switches are a significant part of the mechanical keyboard that determines the experience of mechanical keyboards. 

With different mechanical switches, the experience of keyboard use gets different. 

There are different brands of mechanical switches:

• Cherry Mx Switches,
• Outemu switches,
• Kailh Switches,
• Gateron Switches, and more.

Choosing a good quality switch like Cherry Mx can initially cost a premium, but eventually, they would last longer, and the performance you get is worth it. 

Only choose from a known brand. Some mechanical keyboards have an unbranded set of mechanical switches that might have been used to cut the mechanical keyboard cost but are not worth it.

So, it is vital to choose a good branded mechanical switch is very important.

Different types of Mechanical Switches by Color

Mechanical Switches, though are manufactured by different brands, but follow similar color coding.

The color coding in the mechanical keyboards determines the experience that you would get using the mechanical keyboard.

The mechanical switches by typing experience can be classified into :

• Clicky – Noisy type
• Tactile – Less Noise but with proper feedback
• Linear – Very smooth experience

For each of the different types of Mechanical switches, you will get a different type of experience.

Here are the different switch colors with my overall experience in this tabular form below:

Switch Types	Switch Category	Keypress Hardness	My Experience
Blue Switch	Clicky Type	Keypress required is initially a bit hard but with time the keys get easy to click and improve the typing experience.	Blue switches are of a clicky type and would make a clicking noise as you type. You would also receive feedback for each key press.
Brown Switch	Tactile Type	The keypress is moderate.	Brown switches are comparatively more silent than blue but have a good amount of bumpy tactile feedback. I love the feedback that the MX Browns give.
Red Switch	Linear Type	The keypress is light, silent clicks, fast and accurate when you type.	I found the red switches a delight to type as they are fast to actuate and also because they require a low actuation force to activate them. With the red switch, I felt like I was typing almost effortlessly.

Who gets the most benefits from mechanical keyboards?

Mechanical keyboards are curated to satisfy a wide range of users.

They are primarily beneficial for 

• Typists
• Gamers, 
• Programmers, 
• Bloggers, 
• Content creators, etc.

These people, using a mechanical keyboard, can boost their daily productivity.

Especially with gaming, the mechanical keyboards give you an added edge over the competitors. 

Competitive pro gamers participating in global gaming events prefer using mechanical keyboards. 

To consider if the mechanical keyboards are worth it, we need to go through the advantages and disadvantages. First, the advantages of mechanical keyboards include their durability, tactile feedback, and customizable keys. They are also known for their faster response time and decreased risk of keys sticking. Additionally, the benefits of mechanical keyboards extend to their ergonomic design, which can reduce strain on the fingers and wrists during prolonged use.

Mechanical Keyboard Advantages

Mechanical keyboards have many advantages that are worth mentioning and for which they are popular globally. The benefits shown below are the reasons why you should consider a mechanical keyboard.

#1. Durability

Durability is an important factor for a keyboard when we use it for intensive tasks like Competitive Gaming. 

There we cannot afford even to lose due to a keyboard glitch or a breakdown in between. 

Mechanical keyboards are durable enough to handle any keyboard-intensive tasks that you give them to do. Mechanical keyboards are really capable of doing tasks faster.

#2. Good Typing Experience

Mechanical keyboards give an excellent typing experience. Mechanical keys have a lower actuation force needed to act and give a good response to your clicks as you type or play games.

Overall, with a mechanical keyboard, you will get an excellent typing experience.

#3. Performance Upgrade

For mechanical keyboards, the switches are pretty important. The switches boost our performance during typing or gaming as with the switches we receive our keypress feedback.

The performance upgrade we get in the mechanical keyboard takes our performance and productivity to par. This helps if you do programming, typing, or gaming.

#4. Increased Keyboard Life

Mechanical keyboards last very much longer, and for about 10 to 15 years, they can survive easily.

Their repair cost or cost for maintenance is very low. If there is any problem, you can add each key or a particular portion of the mechanical keyboard without any problem.

In contrast, the membrane keyboard’s lifespan is short. Once a membrane keyboard gets damaged there remain only two options to fix it. One is to change the membrane itself and another is to change the entire keyboard.

Hence, the mechanical keyboard has an added advantage in terms of keyboard life.

Mechanical Keyboards Disadvantages

To be fair still, mechanical keyboards cannot be without any disadvantages. Mechanical keyboards do have several drawbacks, which I am listing below:

#1. Keyboards are heavy and difficult to carry

Mechanical keyboards are heavy, and hence they are not at all portable options.

If you want to carry your keyboard to any place where you go, it won’t be easy to carry with you.

#2. Expensive

Mechanical keyboards are usually very expensive compared to the cheap budget membrane keyboards available in the market.

For budget users, the overprice of the mechanical keyboard is a downside.

#3. Blue Switches are Loud

Mechanical keyboards with clicky switches like Cherry MX Blue or the Kailh Blue switches are loud.

Using noisy clicky buttons in the office or any environment and needs silence there actually mechanical keyboard is not suitable. 

Using the mechanical keyboard with Blue Switches, people may complain about the noise it produces during fast typing.

My View

A mechanical keyboard is worth it, or not would depend on the type of work you want to accomplish with it. 

For users who do keyboard-intensive tasks like typing and gaming, the mechanical keyboards are excellent and are genuinely worth it.

However, casual gamers and people who look for a keyboard to do very few daily tasks, may not find it worthy. 

There are several non-mechanical gaming keyboards available that can be cheaper to consider.

Here are some of the best Mechanical keyboards available on Amazon:

Last update on 2024-11-21 / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API